Album sales continue to fall, but the music industry is in the golden age of summer festivals where the crowds are paying big bucks to get in

If the music industry is supposed to be suffering, what's all that rumbling from the giant speakers at an increasing number of big outdoor music festivals?

Four new festivals are planned across the country this summer, representing competition for Lollapalooza in Grant Park and affirmation that people still are passionate about music and are willing to spend hundreds of dollars to listen -- even if they don't buy CDs the way they used to.

On Monday, Lollapalooza announced its lineup of around 90 acts and is expected to do at least as well as last summer's three-day festival, which grossed $9.8 million and sold out its 167,330 tickets. Headliner Radiohead also will perform at two other festivals, in New Jersey and California, bringing the number of super-size summer concerts in the U.S. to around a dozen.

With a bevy of big-name corporate sponsors, VIP tickets that include air-conditioned bathrooms and eco-friendly initiatives, concert organizers are catering to a population of music aficionados who've largely abandoned CDs but are listening to more music than ever.

Last year, total album unit sales fell 15 percent, but music overall, including albums, singles, music videos and digital tracks, jumped 14 percent, according to Nielsen SoundScan. The problem is CD sales generate more revenue, so overall music sales in dollar terms have declined.

North American concert sales, meanwhile, increased about 8 percent last year, according to Pollstar, an industry trade publication, giving performers a lifeline.

"Artists have found that their prime income stream is coming from touring," said Gary Bongiovanni, president and editor in chief of Pollstar. "Twenty years ago, artists toured to promote an album. Today, artists tour because there is a demand to see them live and that's how they make their money."

That helps explain why names like Lollapalooza, Bonnaroo, Coachella and Bamboozle are becoming part of the vocabulary of music fans.

For this summer's Lollapalooza, Aug. 1-3 in Grant Park, a three-day pass will cost as much as $205. Cheaper tickets were sold out before the announcement of the lineup, which includes Nine Inch Nails, Rage Against the Machine, Kanye West and Wilco.

Having recently graduated from law school, Canton, Ohio, resident David Calevski didn't think he had the money to burn, but having seen the list of artists he plans to buy tickets this week to attend his third Lollapalooza.

"It's like the musical equivalent to a sampler platter," the 29-year-old said. "If you see the band live and you like it, when they tour later on their own, you can see them."

Kunal Karamchandani, 22, a student who lives in Wrigleyville, agrees that music fests are a chance to see lesser-known acts.

"You're going to see acts you wouldn't see at regular concerts," he said.

He said it's worth it to go to festivals like Lollapalooza and South By Southwest. "In my eyes, the fact it's pricier, that's how these guys make their money," Karamchandani said. "You want to support them and not just download them for free."

Don Malkemes, however, said he'd rather go to a concert to see his favorite band live than a big festival like Lollapalooza.

"It's preferable to see them in a small place. The sound is always better inside," said the 31-year-old computer content analyst who lives in Logan Square.

Cathy Putman, 37, points out that expensive tickets are a downside, as is the time commitment involved with a music fest.

With a concert, "you don't have to wait around all day," Putman said.

Jerry Mickelson, founder and partner of Jam Productions, understands the appeal of music festivals, but companies such as his, which owns Chicago venues including the Riviera and Park West, are on the losing end.

The contracts between festival organizers and bands contain "radius" clauses that prevent musicians from playing within a certain radius of the event and within a certain time period before and after it.

"What it does to the local concert scene is it destroys it," Mickelson said. "We're all in the same boat, we all have more dark nights. You can't make and manufacture a band. There's X amount of music out there that tours each year."

The industry's new entrants this year are Outside Lands Festival in San Francisco, Mile High Music Festival in Commerce City, Colo., All Points West Music & Arts Festival in Jersey City, and Rothbury Festival, in Rothbury, Mich..

The organizers of Rothbury, 3 1/2 hours from Chicago, are planning chartered bus and train options to help Chicago residents travel to its festival, which offers multiple lodging and camping options. Tickets that started at $1,500 per person and included lodging in a log home and amenities have sold out.

Corporate sponsors are gravitating toward the venues as well, because of the close proximity they get to the coveted age 18-to-34 demographic.

"We're looking more for sponsors that are interested in becoming part of the fan experience, like setting up our Internet cafe or setting up a test drive of a green car," said Carrie Lombardi, a spokeswoman for Rothbury. "It takes the large sponsors a little bit of time to make that U-turn."

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PITCHFORK

Could they charge more if they wanted to?

In addition to Lollapalooza, this will be the third year for Pitchfork, which tries to differentiate itself from other festivals by focusing on new bands and keeping the ticket prices lower. Tickets for the July 18-20 festival, which last year drew 55,000 people to Union Park, are $65, up from last year's $50. Chris Kaskie, associate publisher of Pitchfork Media, acknowledges it would be easier to charge even more.

"People are used to spending a lot more," he said. "People are used to spending in the hundreds."